Say That Again Slowly - The Cambridge Festival Podcast!

Discovering Russian composer, Valentia Serova, with Nicholas Ong

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:25:00 +0000

This podcast, hosted by Gaia Dratwinska, looks at Nicholas Ong’s research into the life and music of Russian composer, Valentia Serova (1846-1925), the creator of the first opera by a woman to be performed at the Bolshoi theatre in Moscow.

Produced by Claire Watt.

Wonders of the human body with Dr Jo

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:24:00 +0000

In this episode, Iona Warne interviews Dr Jo, of Dr Jo Science, to investigate some surprising facts about the human body, as well as looking into how science can best be communicated to children.

Facebook.com/DrJoScience

Produced by Claire Watt.

Climate tracking and temperature scarves with Clare Wilkes

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:23:00 +0000

In this podcast, Soraya Shakibi talks to Clare Wilkes about her work with temperature scarves, exploring this unique blend of crafts and environmental consciousness.

Produced by Claire Watt.

Vaccines (past, present and future) with Dr Brian Ferguson

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:22:00 +0000

In this episode, Catalina Taylor chats with Dr Brian Ferguson, an immunologist and Associate Professor of Immunology at the University of Cambridge, about how vaccines work and why we need them.

Produced by Claire Watt.

Talking nuclear fusion and fission with Atomic Academy

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:21:00 +0000

This episode sees Joanne Yau get to grips with the basics of nuclear energy, as well as taking a good look at their green potential. Featuring PhD researchers from the Nuclear Energy Futures CDT (Hannah Tipping, Martin Gillet, Will Thomas, Jason Lee and Parth Kulkarni).

Produced by Claire Watt.

Uncovering the Bronze Age settlement, Must Farm, with Christopher Wakefield

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:11:00 +0000

In this podcast, Claire Watt talks to Chris Wakefield, one of the archaeologists working on Must

Farm, a Bronze Age settlement near Peterborough which has been described as

‘Britain’s Pompei’.

Produced by Claire Watt.

The Pain-defying Superpowers of Naked Mole-rats – with Ewan St John Smith

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 09:28:45 +0000

Why don’t naked mole-rats feel some kinds of pain and what does this mean for human medicine?

Simone Eizagirre Barker talks to Ewan St John about his work studying pain and the extraordinary biology of naked mole-rats which is helping us learn about all sorts of human diseases and uncover potential cures or forms of symptom management.

Find out more about naked mole-rats and watch an animation about them here: https://www.phar.cam.ac.uk/research/NMRI

Music by Coby O'Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

The Herbarium and the Power of Plants — with Dr Lauren Gardiner and Dr Edwin Rose

Cambridge Festival — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 09:29:22 +0000

What is a herbarium and why is it important?

Gregory Miller visits Dr Lauren Gardiner and Dr Edwin Rose at the Cambridge University Herbarium to learn more about this fascinating library of plants, who collected them, and why they are so crucial to the study of more than just the natural world.

Event link here: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/events/exploring-cambridge-university-herbarium-its-historical-context

Music by Coby O'Brien Produced by Rebekah King

The Future of Nuclear Power

Cambridge Festival — Fri, 24 Mar 2023 12:19:59 +0000

How does nuclear energy work and is it the best way forward for powering out future?

Beth King talks to Susannah Lea, Michael Salvini and Hugh Dorward, three members of the CDT PhD team behind the event ‘the Nuclear Energy Futures Fair: an Insight into the Energy of Tomorrow.’

Event link here: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/events/nuclear-energy-futures-fair-insight-energy-tomorrow

Music by Coby O'Brien

Produced by Rebekah King

Money and the Metaphors of Power – with Joe Cribb

Cambridge Festival — Fri, 24 Mar 2023 12:18:52 +0000

When we say that money is power, what exactly do we mean?

Anna Mahtani talks to numismatist and former curator of coins at the British Museum Joe Cribb about the past and future of money. From ancient Chinese coins to cryptocurrencies, what does the study of money tell us about our world and who has power within it?

Music by Coby O'Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

Who does Greek and Roman Antiquity Belong to? – with Prof Tim Whitmarsh

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 08:04:46 +0000

Who owns the past and does antiquity really ‘belong’ to anyone? Ella O’Loughlin speaks to Prof Tim Whitmarsh about an event at the Faculty of Classics which will discuss how the classical past is understood and who feels a sense of ownership over it.

Find out more about the event here: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/events/past-tense-who-does-greek-and-roman-antiquity-belong

Music by Coby O'Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

The Violent Power of Early England’s Female Saints – with Prof Rosalind Love

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 08:02:51 +0000

Why did a female saint rise from her tomb and slap a bellringer across the face? Ella O’Loughlin speaks to Prof Rosalind Love about her recent Cambridge Festival event on female saints and hears some of the vivid stories told about their unique kind of power.

Music by Coby O'Brien

Produced by Rebekah King

Power, Paganism, and Christianity: Exploring Julian the Apostate

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 15 Mar 2023 15:39:53 +0000

Who was the Roman Emperor who rejected Christianity?

Amelia Platt speaks to Dr Lea Niccolai from the Faculty of Classics about her talk on Julian the Apostate, an emperor who was raised Christian but rejected the faith and returned to the worship of the Roman gods.

Find out more at the Cambridge Festival 2023

https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/events/last-pagan-emperor-understanding-julian-apostate

Music by Coby O'Brien

Produced by Rebekah King

We Shall Not Cease From Exploration - The Poetry of Research

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:29:35 +0000

How can poetry explore and share academic research with the public?

Rebekah King speaks with David Cain and researchers at the University of Cambridge about their participation in the Creative Encounters Words programme.

Listen to researchers Dr Catherine Merrick (Senior Lecturer Pathology, Biological Sciences), accompanying music by Jonathan Windsor, Anne Thomas (Newnham College & Plant Sciences)
Mona Jebril (Research Fellow, Centre for Business Research) read their poems and talk about how poetry has enabled them to think differently about the research.

The Words programme set out to look at and share research through poetry. Together with the poetry and public engagement professional, David Cain, the researchers explored the vast world of poetry, its different formats to bring out the poetry that lay behind their research for performance and for publication.

You can discover more about the Words programme, and read all the poems from 2022, at the Words website.

www.cam.ac.uk/public-engagement/…022/creative-words

David's book Truth Street was shortlisted for the Forward Prizes for Poetry in 2019.

www.forwardartsfoundation.org/forward-pr…avid-cain/

Music by Coby O’Brien

Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Exploring the Deception Island Hut – with Elizabeth Lewis Williams

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:28:26 +0000

What was it like to live in a remote Antarctic hut and how has Story Machine recreated this?

Kika Hendry speaks with Elizabeth Lewis Williams who is the writer in residence at British Antarctic Survey and has created the Deception Island Hut installation with Sam Ruddock and Story Machine. Keep listening for a snippet of the haunting audio soundscape…

The Deception Island hut has been on McDonald Lawn, Outside of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Downing Street, during the Cambridge Festival.

For more information about where it will tour next, see storymachines.co.uk/portfolio/deception-island/

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

The Logic of Religion – with Ryan Haecker

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:27:03 +0000

How can logic be used by both atheists and believers to address the questions of religion?

Rebekah King talks to theologian, Ryan Haecker, about what theology means in the modern world, how it differs from philosophy, and what common ground people of different viewpoints might find in order to hold more constructive and insightful debates.

Ryan’s talk ‘The Logic of Religion: Beyond Atheism Versus Theism’ was given at the Cambridge Festival 2022 and can be found online here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5QyjfoWEAE

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

All the Sonnets of Shakespeare – with Paul Edmondson and Sir Stanley Wells

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:25:23 +0000

What exactly is a sonnet and what’s so special about those written by Shakespeare?

Reuben J. Brown talks to Dr Paul Edmondson and Sir Stanley Wells about their new collection, All the Sonnets of Shakespeare, which they have previously spoken about at the Cambridge Festival. This discussion is a fantastic introduction to one of the most influential types of poetry in the English language.

This episode is supported by the Cambridge University Press bookshop.

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Fighting the Big Diseases at AstraZeneca and the Postdoctoral Challenge – with Lotte van Beek and Toby Gurran

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:23:59 +0000

How are young researchers helping AstraZeneca fight complex diseases?

Rebekah King speaks with Lotte van Beek and Toby Gurran, about what it's like to be a researcher at AstraZeneca, and hears about the postdoctoral challenge, an opportunity which is aimed at young scientists finishing their PhD or MD.

Find out more about the challenge here: www.astrazeneca.com/media-centre/pr…-diversity.html

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

AstraZeneca are a key sponsor of the Cambridge Festival.

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

The Big Bang, Time Travel, and Black Holes – with Geraint Lewis and Luke Barnes

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:22:51 +0000

Is time travel possible? What does a black hole actually do to light? What does ‘galactic cannibalism’ mean?

Honour de Pledge speaks to Geraint Lewis and Luke Barnes, authors of ‘A Fortunate Universe: Life in a Finely Tuned Cosmos’ and ‘The Cosmic Revolutionary’s Handbook: (Or: How to Beat the Big Bang)’ about a tiny, simple, easily explainable topic...how the universe works!

This episode is supported by the Cambridge University Press Bookshop.

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Imagining aliens – with Wallace Arthur

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:21:28 +0000

What will aliens look like if we find them? Could a planet be entirely purple? Do skeletons have to be made of bone?

Rebekah King speaks to evolutionary biologist and science writer Wallace Arthur about his book ‘The Biological Universe, Life in the Milky Way and Beyond,’ which was published by the Cambridge University Press in 2020.

This is a Cambridge University Press Bookshop supported podcast.

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

There is No Planet B – with Mike Berners-Lee

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:20:22 +0000

What mindset should we have about the global climate crisis?

Sophie Carlin speaks to expert in carbon footprinting, Mike Berners-Lee, about the new updated version of his book ‘There is No Planet B’ about climate change, cooperation, and the possibility of not only saving the world, but building a far better, brighter future for all.

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Body Image for Young People – with Charlotte Markey

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:19:08 +0000

How can young people improve their body image in an age of social media?

Jesimiel Akinsuyi speaks to Charlotte Markey, author of both the ‘Body Image Book for Girls’ and the ‘Body Image Book for Boys,’ about her motivations for writing both books, what body image means, and how it is affected by social media.

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Counter Speech and Online Harm – with Stefanie Ullmann

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:18:04 +0000

What is ‘counter speech’ and is it a more powerful alternative to censorship?

Scarlett Croft talks to Stefanie Ullmann about her research into harmful online content and strategies for combatting prejudice and hate. Scarlett also asks about how automated systems like Siri and Alexa should be programmed to respond when spoken to in an aggressive or sexist manner.

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Recipes for Saving the Planet – with Dana Ellis Hunnes

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:15:51 +0000

What can students do to help the planet?

Sophie Carlin speaks to nutritionist and climate change expert Dana Ellis Hunnes about her new book Recipes for Survival: What You Can Do to Live a Healthier and More Environmentally Friendly Life and gets the best advice for students who want to make a difference to the planet’s health.

A big thank you to CUP Bookshop for their support of this event and recording.

You can complete the survey mentioned in this episode here:

s.surveyplanet.com/67a7k51o

Music by Coby O’Brien
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/

Animals in Biomedical Research: Replacement, Refinement, Reduction - with Selina Ballantyne

Cambridge Festival — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:13:52 +0000

Will we ever be able to stop using animals in the laboratory?

This episode, Rebekah King talks to Selina Ballantyne about the ways in which animal testing is being replaced, refined, and reduced such that good science and good animal welfare can go hand in hand.

Coby O'Brien - Music
Produced by Rebekah King

To find out more about the Festival, please visit: https://www.festival.cam.ac.uk/